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J-PAL VoicesEpisode 7: Using Research to Understand ImpactEvery year from June to August, hundreds of thousands of youth – between the ages of 14 and 24 – participate in summer jobs programs across the United States. These programs, also known as summer youth employment programs or SYEPs, have been receiving greater attention over the past few years as an important policy tool to improve youth outcomes. In this special episode of J-PAL Voices, we will discuss research showing that summer youth employment programs can improve the lives of young people in outcome areas as diverse as employment, criminal legal system involvement, education, and youth development. We will also revis...2022-07-2020 minJ-PAL VoicesEpisode 6: Change the NarrativeIn arguing that changing the narrative is a critical strategy in fostering mobility from poverty, the US Partnership on Mobility from Poverty notes that “the narratives we use to make sense of the world shape our attitudes and ultimately the policies we devise and endorse”. On the final episode of this season of J-PAL Voices we hear how summer jobs programs are changing the narrative for their participants.Angela Rudolph in Chicago tells us that young people are just waiting for us to see them and invest in them. Julia Breitman in New York City is firm in her conv...2020-12-2322 minJ-PAL VoicesEpisode 5: Create Access to Good JobsIn Boston, Chicago, and New York City, research has shown that summer jobs programs lead to a large decrease in violent crime and incarceration. However, in some places, the impacts on earnings are more muted in the short-term. In episode five of J-PAL Voices: The Impact and Promise of Summer Jobs in the United States, we learn how agencies like New York City’s Department of Youth and Community Development are working to ensure that summer jobs programs can create a pathway to good jobs. We learn how these programs teach their participants transferable skills and empower them to cha...2020-12-0919 minJ-PAL VoicesEpisode 4: Provide Support That EmpowersHow do summer jobs programs empower their youth through short programs? What leads to the lasting impact that we see in decreases in violent crime well after the programs conclude? In episode four of J-PAL Voices: The Impact and Promise of Summer Jobs in the United States, we hear from service providers like Danielle Ellman at Commonpoint Queens about the “whole person” and “whole family” approach that these organizations take towards their participants. Researchers Sara Heller and Alicia Sasser-Modestino describe their findings around the conflict-resolution skills that these programs inculcate in their participants. And as Chekemma Fulmore-Townsend tells us, the resi...2020-11-2521 minJ-PAL VoicesEpisode 3: Transform Data UseIn describing his partnership with the Department of Youth & Community Development, Judd Kessler says that this research agenda is in large part a story about data. In episode three of J-PAL Voices: The Impact and Promise of Summer Jobs in the United States, we look at the role that data play in summer jobs programs. Chekemma Fulmore-Townsend and Julia Breitman discuss how data on program participation have helped them meet racial equity targets in program delivery. Alicia Sasser-Modestino illustrates the variety of data sources used in an impact evaluation of Boston’s summer jobs program. Data help us look at...2020-11-1121 minJ-PAL VoicesEpisode 2: Ensure Zip Code is Not DestinyWhat does it mean for a program to transform communities while remaining grounded in the voices and perspectives of residents? In the second episode of J-PAL Voices: The Impact and Promise of Summer Jobs in the United States, we look at how summer jobs programs in Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and New York City strive to ensure that zip code is not destiny. These programs celebrate diversity and introduce participants to a variety of perspectives. Hear how yesterday’s participants become today’s leaders through the stories of Rashad Cope and Tatiana Arguello. Learn about the value of building deep rela...2020-10-2826 minJ-PAL VoicesEpisode 1: Setting the StageIn the first episode of J-PAL Voices: The Impact and Promise of Summer Jobs in the United States, we introduce you to some of the people you will meet throughout the series: Researchers like Judd Kessler and Sara Heller, who use rigorous randomized evaluations, or randomized controlled trials, to measure the impact of summer jobs programs on crime, incarceration, and employment. Participants like Habiba Khan and Erica Chen, who went through Common Point Queens’ Ladders for Leaders program. Program Directors like Angela Rudolph and Julia Breitman, who oversee summer jobs activities in Chicago and New York City. Over the re...2020-10-1421 min